- Tuesday, November 26, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
LIFE in Britain has been thrown out of gear, thanks to intense heat waves. Temperatures in the country which is known to be cold have touched 40 degree Celsius and it has resulted in some sights that are otherwise not common there.
For instance, a recent tweet shared by the UK’s Network Rail informed the passengers that a fire spread onto the railway tracks in Sandy, Bedfordshire, because of the heat. An image shared by the Network Rail showed how the tracks had turned black after catching fire. It has also been reported that the heat ended up expanding the railway tracks by nine kilometres earlier this week.
In another image, it was shown how even railway signals were melting because of scorching heat.
“The incident has caused major damage to signalling equipment and a level crossing in the area, both of which need complex repairs to be completed,” Network Rail said in a statement. It also advised passengers to recheck their travel schedule saying journeys will be delayed as repair works had to be carried out.
? Britain's highest ever temperatures were a huge challenge for a railway engineered for much less intense summers.
? Here are seven ways we responded to this week's heatwave, all to keep you safe:
➡️ https://t.co/yLJfFpq0Ro#heatwave #heatwaveuk pic.twitter.com/YUreAm3cd5
— Network Rail (@networkrail) July 21, 2022
A tweet shared on Wednesday shared pictures of how railway tracks have been directly affected due to the rising temperature in England. The pictures showed buckled rails, fires burning the tracks, and sagging overhead line equipment that could not bear the heat. Sharing the tweet, Network Rail added, “Check before you travel by rail today! Journeys will take much longer than usual while we continue repairs caused by the heat wave.”
Is Britain’s infrastructure under a serious challenge because of the unprecedented heat conditions?
According to a report, it will be like never before.
“Hot weather strains the pipes that pump our water, the power lines that deliver our energy and the roads and railways that get us home at night. As global temperatures continue to rise, national infrastructure will be challenged as never before,” a piece in The Conversation said.
It said while the “affluent” UK has the capacity and resources to adapt to warmer temperatures, yet very little has been done over the past decade to address overheating in buildings and the growing risk to critical infrastructure.
“The country is unprepared to handle temperatures of more than 38°C consistently for long periods, which is more common in Mediterranean countries,” the piece said.
It said infrastructure in the UK has been designed in a way which enables it to retain heat during the winter and said it should also be effective at keeping the heat out in times of summer. It warned that roughly 20 per cent of the existing infrastructure in the UK is at risk of overheating and the threat is projected to rise further as the mercury soars further.
It cited examples of railway tracks, transmission cables for trains, water pipes and electrical power lines getting adversely affected by intense heat.
“Building a net zero country demands not only a transition to zero-carbon technologies, but adapting existing infrastructure to withstand the challenges of climate change. An economy capable of slowing and eventually reversing global heating can only emerge if we adapt what already exists to the inevitable impacts to come,” The Conversation article added.
